Amazon released the trailer for I Am: Celine Dion this past week. To be honest, we’re…still not over how hard it was to watch. To be clear, the difficult part was not that it was cringe or uninteresting. Nope, nothing like that. We actually wish the documentary looked boring or just…otherwise wasn’t for us. Because, really, that would be a lot easier to deal with. Instead, we got pretty emotional watching the trailer, which was only about two minutes long. So, if we may or may not have had something in our eyes from such a short introduction to the film…what’s going to happen when we watch the whole thing? We’re pretty sure it’s going to wreck us.
Ever since Celine Dion first announced she had Stiff Person Syndrome, we’ve wanted nothing but the best for her. Autoimmune diseases don’t have cures; there is no “get well soon” that works for this. But hope is a good thing — as long as it doesn’t erase the experiences of chronically ill people and/or use language that implies folks whose symptoms don’t improve are somehow either not trying or weak, of course — and we’ve tried very hard to maintain hope for Celine. So far, whatever she’s trying seems to be helping enough for her to have made it to this year’s Grammys. (Standing ovation: deserved). Much like watching the I Am: Celine Dion trailer…it was a very emotional moment for us.
Pretty much all of the trailer hits us in the feels — whether it’s Celine’s iconic voice at the very beginning and in old concert footage, the voiceover, or anything else. Seriously. Celine Dion exists, and that’s all it takes for us to have feelings. But the hardest part comes around the 1:40 mark, where you can tell just how much she’s grieving in the moment. Not only that, but remember when we said hope was a good thing? That moment of feeling like you’ve lost not only hope but any possible path back to it is about one of the worst things you can experience. Seeing it written all over the face of someone whose work you admire, whose many triumphs were just on your screen, though? Absolutely gutting.
“I miss it so much. The people. I miss them. If I can’t run, I’ll walk; if I can’t walk, I’ll crawl.”
For what it’s worth, the people miss Celine Dion too. We’ll be ready if and when she’s able to come back to us. And if she can’t, she’ll still always be a legend and an icon. Nobody can ever take that away from her. Ever.
Watch the I Am: Celine Dion trailer here:
In case you missed it, here’s the synopsis (courtesy of Amazon):
“Directed by Academy Award nominee Irene Taylor, I AM: CELINE DION gives us a raw and honest behind-the-scenes look at the iconic superstar’s struggle with a life-altering illness. Serving as a love letter to her fans, this inspirational documentary highlights the music that has guided her life while also showcasing the resilience of the human spirit.”
